1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of backpacks and particularly to small frameless fanny packs with waist encircling belts, and to a method of using the same.
2. Background Art
Small frameless backpacks or so called "day packs" have become widely popular with the general populace, and particularly with students and hikers, for carrying small loads. However, almost without exception these small packs lack any sort of load supporting waist encircling belt to help spread the load. This results in undue strain on the neck and shoulders. Additionally, when these day packs are used for active sports such as hiking or cycling, and because they are generally frameless and lie directly in contact with the wearer's back, they trap perspiration causing the wear's back to become wet and uncomfortable. Also, these day packs tend to restrict the wearer's range of motion in the upper body when executing sudden or difficult maneuvers. More recently small, waist encircling day packs without shoulder encircling straps, so called "fanny-packs" have gained in popularity due to their generally smaller size and less encumbering design. While these fanny packs offer greater freedom of movement, and avoid the perspiration problem they are less than ideal for carrying the heavier loads typical of day hiking. When heavily loaded the single waist encircling belt puts undue stress on the lumbar region and the abdomen because the belt must be tightly cinched so that the bag doesn't slip down or tilt backwards. When engaged in vigorous exercise such as running, these fanny-packs also tend to bounce up and down and slip around to the front. This problem can be partially minimized by tightly cinching the waist belt, but additional strain is then put on the lumbar and abdomen.